A Perfect Match
by theshewordsmith
Summary: Rachel Berry is a young tennis player who has just made the leap after spending a couple of years on the junior tour. Her only focus is to be the best female tennis player in the world, and win as many Grand Slams as she can. Love was the furthest thing from her mind. That doesn't mean it won't take her by surprise.
1. Chapter 1

Rachel Berry couldn't believe it. She was in Australia!

The seventeen-year-old New Yorker had decided to take the plunge and turn professional on the back of a very successful 2011 season, where she'd made the semifinals of Wimbledon's Ladies Junior Singles, been a finalist at the US Open, and won the Orange Bowl Junior Championships. Rachel could have stayed a junior player till her eighteenth birthday, but after consulting with her two supportive fathers and brand new coach, the young athlete had decided it was time to start competing against the big girls. After all, she would need to beat them if she were to fulfil her lifelong ambition of winning as many Grand Slam titles as her freshly retired role model Serena Williams.

This wasn't Rachel's first trip to the land Down Under, and she had thoroughly enjoyed her last trip to Melbourne where she'd gained some valuable experience playing in the junior singles tournament at the Australian Open. The brunette wasn't overly happy when she lost in the third round, but as the United States Tennis Association's chief of Player Development William Schuester had pointed out, a good player learned how to take losses in their stride on their quest for excellence. Now, one year later, the USTA had decided to give Rachel Berry one of the wild cards afforded to them as a fellow Grand Slam host, and she was going to give it her best shot!

Rachel stepped out of the tournament provided car, and gazed up at the Rod Laver Arena. To her the sport wasn't just something she was good at, it was an actual passion. She knew it's history well, and as a result, knew a lot about the man Melbourne Park's crown jewel was named after. She had caught a fleeting glimpse of the legendary champion around the grounds last year, and was hoping she'd get to go one better and actually meet Rocket Rod this year. She could dream...

Rachel was shaken from her thoughts by the sound of a throat being cleared. She glanced beside her to her coach Shelby Corcoran, who was smiling down at her young protege. "If you're done staring, shall we?"

Rachel shrugged, but smiled as she slung the straps of her tennis kit around her shoulders. "It's easy for you not to be overawed. Your name's already engraved on the trophy."

Shelby had been a top player during her day, and had won the Australian Open Ladies Singles titles in 1986 and 1988, along with the US Open title in 1987. Tennis historians were of the agreement that she would have won many more majors if her career hadn't been cut short by a chronic right wrist injury, but the player herself had faced her struggles with injury with a sunny disposition. A few years ago Shelby had been recruited to work with some of the USTA's most promising young players, and she had agreed to coach Rachel full time after being on hand to watch the youngster win the Orange Bowl.

"Twice", Shelby winked and led the way to the player's registration area. Rachel let her coach do most of the talking as she continued to pinch herself to make sure this wasn't a dream. Rachel Berry had wanted to be a tennis player ever since she'd watched Martina Hingis and Steffi Graf battle it out for the French Open title in 1999. Rachel's fathers, both huge tennis enthusiasts and above-average casual players themselves, were delighted in the interest their only child was showing the match. In fact, a picture of a young Rachel Berry practically glued to the match on television had a place of pride on the mantlepiece in the Berry home. The next day her dad, Leroy, went out and bought Rachel her first Wilson tennis racket, and as it turned out, she was a natural. With great hand-eye coordination and an obviously good sense for the game, it was only a matter of time before Rachel's parents signed her up for tennis classes, and the rest is history. Leroy and Hiram didn't blink when their ten year old daughter asked to be homeschooled so she could concentrate more on tennis, and agreed to her request after speaking with her coach at the time, who didn't hesitate to mention that the USTA was already keeping an eye on Rachel's game. Seven years later, Rachel was ready to start repaying their faith in her by doing one thing - Winning tournaments.

The registration process passed in a blur, and year's later Rachel would only be able to remember signing her name where she needed to, smiling for the picture for her player's access card (which she didn't know would also be the photograph used to introduce her player statistics on television), and taking pictures of Shelby with tennis enthusiasts that recognised her as they left the building.

"Is Brittany hitting with us this morning?" Rachel asked her coach, as they made their way to Practice Court No. 9.

Shelby shook her head in the negative. "She's had to spend some more time on the massage table for her hamstring. I wouldn't stress too much. Your opening Doubles match isn't till the third day of the opening week, so you two will have plenty of time to practice together. In the meantime, we've lucked out because tournament officials have put you on with Dellacqua this morning. It's a good way for you to get used to how the courts will play against a big hitter."

Rachel nodded in agreement, and slowed down her pace as she noticed the crowd up ahead. People were craning their necks and climbing on to bleachers for a better look at whoever was on there. Camera bulbs were flashing, the collective sounds of the accompanying clicks audible even a few meters away. Shelby didn't need to tell her charge that there was a top ranked player on there.

Moments later, the loud voice of Sue Sylvester carried to Rachel's ears even before the brunette could see who was on the court. The multiple Grand Slam winning American tennis legend and current super coach was putting the world's top ranked female singles player through what seemed to be an intensive forehand drill. Quinn Fabray's skin glistened under the blazing Australian sun and sweat dripped down her forehead as she whacked ball after ball down the forehand line.

"Faster, faster! C'mon Fabray, move your legs! That's better. Precision is key. The thread must pass freely through the eye of the needle!". Sue looked up, and caught sight of Shelby as she and Rachel passed by. She nodded her head in acknowledgment of her fellow former player and now coach, before turning her attention back to Quinn.

Rachel watched Quinn pound a forehand down the line and immediately get back into position to hit another one. In the background sat Quinn's father Russell, his eyes following his daughter's every move. She watched the best player in the world hit another winner before turning her gaze forward on her journey to her own practice session.

'_There's much work to be done_' she thought, preparing herself for what lay ahead.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you to everyone that has taken the time to write me a review. Your words of encouragement, and also your criticisms and advice, are much appreciated. As some of you have asked, yes, I am a fan of the actual sport. I also understand that this might seem like an ambitious storyline to some, but I hope to do it justice. Feel free to keep nudging me in what you might think is the right direction, and I promise to take all suggestions on board.**

**Thank you for reading :)**

Rachel towelled her face dry as she stepped off the sunny court and into the artificially lit, and thankfully air-conditioned, corridor. She immediately set her kit bag down before unzipping one side and pulling out her cellphone. The brunette wasted no time in making a call, absentmindedly drying her once again sweaty face as she waited patiently for her call to be answered.

Rachel heard a click. "Sweetheart! We are so proud of you!"

The tennis player couldn't stop her face from breaking out into a blinding smile if she'd tried. "Thank you Daddy!"

She could hear her other father asking to be handed the phone, and grinned as she listened to the sounds of the phone changing hands. "You were excellent darling! Congratulations! Wait, your Daddy is being annoying..." There was a click, "There, now you're on loudspeaker."

Rachel laughed, "Thank you Daddy, Papa. And thank you for staying up to watch the game."

Hiram huffed, "As if we would miss our baby girl's Grand Slam debut. You were so good out there sweetheart. Rock solid. How are you feeling?"

A door at the other end of the corridor opened, and Rachel spotted Shelby making her way towards her. The two women made eye contact, and Shelby's face split into a grin that matched Rachel's. "I'm alright Daddy. Just happy I made it through. The crowd wasn't very welcoming at the start."

"That's to be expected when you're playing a local", Leroy piped up. "They seemed to like you by the end of it though."

Shelby reached Rachel, and wrapped her charge in a quick embrace before handing her a protein bar. Rachel rolled her eyes good-naturedly, but balanced her phone between her shoulder and ear as she unwrapped the bar. "That's true. They seemed to appreciate our play. I even got some very encouraging words when I was signing autographs at the end." She took a bite of the bar.

"Did you hear that Hiram? Our baby girl is signing autographs!" Rachel could hear the emotion in her Papa's voice, and once again found herself wishing they were in Melbourne to celebrate this momentous occasion with her.

Hiram also sounded choked up when he spoke, "I can't say this enough Rachel. We are so, _so_ proud of you."

Rachel found herself blinking away tears, "Thanks Daddy. I wouldn't be here without your endless support all these years." She finished the last of her protein bar, only to be handed a bottle of drink from Shelby, who mouthed '_Gotta stay hydrated_.'

"So, what do you do now?" asked Leroy.

"Um, I'm going to warm down, take a shower and go into my media interview before jumping onto the massage table for a bit. The heat out there was really sapping" she replied, taking a bit swig of the drink.

"Alright, well, your Daddy and I are going to call it a night. We'll call you before we leave for work in the morning. We love you sweetheart. Remember to stay hydrated!" Leroy said.

"Love you Rach!" Hiram added in the background.

Rachel smiled, "I love you too Daddy, Papa. Sweet dreams tonight."

Hiram smiled through the phone, "Oh don't worry darling, We're going to have wonderful dreams after that performance you just put on out there! Night night!". And with that, her father's hung up.

Shelby hugged Rachel again after the younger brunette put her phone away. "Congratulations Ms. Berry! You now have a one-zero record at the Slams."

Rachel grinned and high-fived her coach before they began to set off towards the locker room. The pair stopped moving when an Australian Open ground staff member trailing them called out to Rachel. "Ms. Berry? Could you please follow me this way? Everyone competing today is being asked to provide urine and blood samples for testing."

Rachel looked at her coach, who shrugged. Shelby spoke as they followed the staff member down the corridor, "It's not out of the ordinary for Grand Slam's to test all competitors on the first two or three days of competition. That way they've got samples from practically everyone that plays this level of tennis."

About an hour and a half later Rachel and Shelby walked out of her media interview and headed towards the tournament masseuse's room. Seven journalists, mostly American, had attended her press conference, and the number was quite frankly higher than what she had expected. The questions had almost all been tennis related, and the interview had barely taken fifteen minutes to be conducted. Shelby had sat quietly in the corner, observing Rachel with watchful eyes. Her only interaction with the press had been to shrug playfully when Rachel was asked whether her famous coach was a slavedriver in training.

Shelby asked how Rachel's body was feeling, and the two women were discussing Rachel's game that day as they walked into the masseuse's room. A loud cheer from the television in the room caught their attention, and Rachel looked up to see that the night session was about to begin on Rod Laver Arena. She smiled as her friend Brittany Pierce raised her hand in acknowledgment of the crowd's applause as she walked out onto the court. Moments later, the TV produced a deafening roar as the spectators rose as one to welcome the tournaments top seed, and Brittany's first round opponent, on to the court. Quinn Fabray looked all business as she entered the arena, her eyes determined even as she smiled at her legions of fans. The crowd continued to cheer as the World No. 1 made her way to her chair, and dropped her kit bag down.

"Brittany has an uphill battle if she's going to win tonight" Shelby commented.

Rachel nodded. Her British friend had really drawn the short end of the stick when the tournament draw was announced. In fact, Rachel had almost felt bad for having the good fortune of being matched up against the relatively unknown Australian Jarmila Gajdosova when Brittany's luck had clearly not done her any favours. That said, Brittany had accepted her fate with her usual sunny smile, and had spent hours on court training with Rachel and analysing videos of Quinn Fabray's play. As she said, if she was going to lose then she was going to go out fighting.

Rachel settled herself on the masseuse's table, her eyes never leaving the TV screen. This would be a good match.


	3. Chapter 3

**I'm updating this story quicker than I thought I would. When I get into a routine, I hope to update this story once a week. I know many people would like to see longer chapters, but this is the story and format that I have in mind. Some chapters might get longer, so I can tell the part of the story that I want to share in that particular chapter. **

**Once again, a big thank you to everyone that made the effort to leave me feedback. It is much appreciated. **

The tournament's media handler pointed out to a journalist.

"Ms. Berry-".

"Please, call me Rachel", the brunette said. "Ms. Berry sounds too formal."

"Rachel," the journalist continued, "how are you feeling?"

Rachel took a deep breath, "Disappointed, obviously. Everyone walks out to a match wanting to win it, but today wasn't to be my day. And Vika played a great match, so kudos to her."

"Do you think your lack of experience at certain key moments went against you?"

Rachel nodded, "It might have. I think I made the right calls, but Vika's been there and done that in those situations for so long that she might have been less nervous than me during the really crucial moments.

The tournament employee pointed out to another reporter.

"Jacob Israel, from the New York Times. First up, well done on reaching the third round on your Grand Slam debut. And my commiserations for losing a tough three set battle. Realistically though, were you expecting to be here? You did make it to the main draw through a wild card, after all, and this _is_ your first month on the ladies tour."

"Thank you Jacob," Rachel smiled, "And yes, without meaning to sound pompous, I thought getting to the third round was an achievable target after getting past the first round. I'd played against Tina Cohen-Chang on the junior circuit a few times before she moved up last year, and I knew I could win my second round if I stuck to my game plan."

"Speaking of your game plan, how does having Shelby Corcoran as your coach help with your strategy?" Jacob asked.

Rachel smiled at her coach, who was watching from a corner of the room. "Well, Shelby's probably my biggest off court asset. She brings with her years of experience, and a tactical knowledge that you only get from being in actual match situations. She's won multiple Slams, and knows what it takes to reach the pinnacle of the sport. So to answer your question, she's a great help when it comes to strategy and the mental aspect of tennis. We analyze my opponent's playing styles together, and she's always giving me insights on what weaknesses to look for in an opponent's game or demeanor."

"Such as?" Jacob prompted.

Rachel grinned, "That is a secret between Shelby and I."

The gathered media laughed, before another journalist piped up "Your opponent today has won two Australian Open titles in the past. Do you think Azarenka has a third title in her this year?"

"Vika is a real champion. She's been a top player for years now, and I think she would have won even more tournaments if she hadn't lost practically an entire year to injuries. But she seems to be in top form again… trust me, I could feel the power of those shots coming off her racket! So yeah, I don't see why she can't go the distance again this year."

"What about her grunting? Did it bother you?"

Rachel had been ready for this question, and answered honestly. "No. I just focused on the ball, and her grunts really just blended into the background. To be honest, I think they sound louder when you watch her on television. I think the TV mics somehow amplify the grunts and make them sound louder than they actually are."

"Carol Hummel, The Australian. What do you think of your fellow American Quinn Fabray's chances?"

Rachel pondered this a moment, "Well, I think Quinn is the automatic favourite anywhere she goes these days. I mean, she's just twenty-one, and has won every major except the French, so that's saying something. But look, I think women's tennis is in the best place it's been in for a while thanks to champions like Vika, Fabray, Lopez, Rose, Wozniaki, Bouchard. And then you have the younger lot like Pierce, Cohen-Chang and hopefully even myself, that are ready to knock on the door. Bottom line, there are no easy wins at this level. So while I wouldn't be surprised if Fabray wins another Aussie Open, I also wouldn't be surprised if someone else took the title."

Another journalist was selected. "Rachel, you and Brittany Pierce lost in the first round of the ladies doubles. What are your plans now? Do you go back to America?"

Rachel smiled, "No, I'm going to stick around for a couple of days and take in the sights and sounds of Melbourne before heading home to New York. Shelby promised me tickets to the Australian tour of The Book of Mormon if I made it to the third round, so I'm looking forward to seeing that. And maybe taking a drive down the Great Ocean Road. Melbourne is a wonderful city."

The same journalist asked, "And what do you plan to do on returning to America?"

The tennis player looked serious again, "More work on the court. And in the gym. I need to get stronger, physically, if I'm going to match the top ladies in baseline rallies. I'm happy with my serve and volley game, but there's always room for improvement. So yeah, I'll work on my game, my movement, and then try and get through qualifying at the American hard court tournaments. That's my immediate plan."

"What about the Fed Cup?" Jacob asked.

"Oh, I'd jump at the chance to represent the United States of America. I mean, wow, it would be such an honour. We already have a pretty strong squad with Fabray, Rose and Bells, but I'd grab any chance to be on the squad. Even if it meant I didn't actually play any games. There's a lot I could learn from just being on the squad. And Emma Pillsbury is doing a fabulous job as captain, so there's tons I could learn from her as well."

"A lot of people are calling you the next big American tennis star. Does that put any pressure on you?" Carol asked.

Rachel smiled, "If anything, it's a compliment. But I wouldn't get ahead of myself just yet. We know it isn't easy making the transition from the girls' tour to the ladies tour, so I'm just going to take it one step at a time. Like I said, I'm going to work on my game, try to get better, and try to win more. And hopefully fortune gives me the occasional helping hand too."

The journalist that asked the session's first question spoke up, "Will we see Rachel Berry back here next year?"

"Absolutely", Rachel replied. The look in her eyes dared anyone to question her self-confidence.

"And that wraps up our post-match interview. Thank you all for coming" the media handler spoke up. Rachel rose from her chair, and met Shelby at the door. The two women walked out the door together.

"You handle the press like you've been doing it all your life. It's quite impressive really" Shelby commented.

Rachel grinned, "That's what happens when you have a father that works in PR."

The player looked up, to see Santana Lopez walking towards her. It looked like the Spanish star was surrounded by a village, and everyone was trying to speak to her at once. Santana herself was ignoring them all as she made her way towards one of the interview rooms, drink bottle in hand. She locked gazes with Rachel, who was surprised when the big name tennis player stopped in front of her.

"Hi Shelby. It's good to see you again", Santana smiled, before turning her attention to Rachel. "Tough loss today Berry. But you did good out there. I'll be keeping an eye on you." And with that, Santana took off, her team once again hot on her trail.

Rachel was in shock, and couldn't seem to get her mouth to form the words 'thank' and 'you'. She came back to reality when she heard Shelby laugh beside her, and felt her coach tug her arm to get her to start walking again.

"The big girls have noticed you Rachel. It's a good sign" Shelby laughed.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello everyone. As usual, a big thank you to everyone that is still reading this story, and an extra big gracias to all of you that wrote me a review or note of encouragement. I did receive some feedback saying that it would be better for me to write longer chapters and update less often, but I'm quite content with how I'm doing things now. If the story really is less enjoyable to people that dislike shorter chapters then might I suggest only reading the story once a month? That way you can catch up on a bigger chunk of the action when you read, if that is indeed what you prefer. **

**Regardless of whether you read this now or later when I have more chapters up, I hope you're still enjoying how the story is playing out! **

Rachel reached for a handful of popcorn, her eyes tracking the ball on the screen that was being smashed across a net by a quartet of players. After moments of no sound besides that of rackets connecting with the ball and shoes screeching to a stop on the DecoTurf court, the television erupted in a wave of cheers.

Patrick McEnroe's excited voice joined the commotion, "What a point by the USA! The Czech's had them on the back foot for most of that point, but Rose managed to pull that backhand winner out of thin air!"

Martina Navratilova's voice piped up, "The Czech's had that point under control till that beauty from Rose. Pressure on Melzer to get this serve right now."

Rachel realised that her hand had been hovering near her mouth while she watched the screen with bated breath, and quickly popped the popcorn into her mouth as things quietened down again. She reached her hand into the bowl again, but absentmindedly left it there when Melzer served a fault. The tall blonde player tossed the ball up, and hit a very tame serve at Stephens, who smashed a forehand winner down the line. The television erupted again.

Navratilova's voice rose against the noise, "That was a very poor serve by Melzer under pressure. It was begging to be hit for a winner, and Stephens was happy to oblige."

"And that brings up match point for the Americans! Listen to that crowd! Look, even Fabray is on her feet!" McEnroe exclaimed.

The cameras panned to Quinn Fabray, who was indeed on her feet along with the rest of the US squad. The blonde champion was pumping her closed fist, and shouting out words of encouragement to her teammates on court.

Rachel shouted out, "Match point!" Moments later her father's came scurrying into the room, and sat down beside Rachel on the couch.

All three Berry's watched as Melzer hit a cracking serve to Rose's backhand. The American nearly fell over as she stretched to retrieve the serve, but somehow managed to keep the ball in play. Both Czech players were at the net, and after a few back-and-forth volley's, Rose hit a perfect lob that landed just inside the baseline. Safarova chased after the ball, but was unable to return it on one bounce. Rose and Stephens dropped their rackets as they turned to embrace each other. Seconds later they were engulfed by the rest of the US Fed Cup squad, as the audience stood and applauded their effort.

"What a dominant win by the USA! And that too against the same Czech team that won the title last year! Wow!" McEnroe said.

"I couldn't agree more Pat. Questions were raised when Pillsbury picked Stephens for the last spot in the squad, but the selection was more than justified with this win" Navratilova agreed.

Chants of 'U-S-A. U-S-A' could be heard as the American players paraded their flag around the court. "Rose and Stephens were very impressive today, but don't forget Fabray and Bells' contribution to this rubber. Their singles wins were vital" McEnroe pointed out.

"Oh, for sure" Navratilova said. "The 2-0 lead meant that Stephens and Rose could play with relatively no pressure. All in all, I think Pillsbury will be very satisfied that the tie didn't need to go to a third day."

Hiram turned to Rachel, "They played well."

Rachel nodded, "Extremely."

Hiram studied her for a few seconds, before asking "You alright sweetie?"

Rachel smiled one of her blinding smile, "I'm great Daddy!" Hiram didn't look convinced, and moments later the brunette's smile dimmed, "Ok, so I'm a little bummed out at being on this side of the screen."

"Oh honey!" Leroy exclaimed, before wrapping an arm around his daughter, "It's ok to be disappointed. It just proves how much you want to be there. And I know that you will work tirelessly to achieve that goal."

Rachel nodded, "At least we won. I think I would have been more angry if they hadn't picked me and went on to lose."

"That's true. Country first!" Hiram smiled. Rachel returned his smile with a genuine one of her own. "When's the next round of Fed Cup?" her Daddy asked.

"April" she replied.

"Plenty of time for you to push for selection then" Hiram stated. "Maybe that's all the encouragement you need to do well in Indian Wells and Miami next month" he added.

Her Daddy's words echoed in her mind as Rachel made her way onto the Stadium Court in Indian Wells just over a month later. She raised her hand to acknowledge the cheers of the crowd that had come to the day session, glancing at her box as she did so. The brunette broke into a smile at the sight of her father's applauding alongside Shelby, the look of pride on their faces plain to see. Moments later, she heard the crowd once again applaud as her opponent's name was announced, and she knew that Kitty Wilde was on court.

Rachel had arrived in Indian Wells a week earlier, and had won her way through three rounds of qualifying to make it to the main draw. The final match had been a bit of a battle, but Rachel had dug deep and won against her higher ranked Serbian opponent. Rachel suspected that seeing Emma Pillsbury quietly observing the third set from the sidelines had given her that extra push she needed to find her best tennis.

That win had earned her a first round match against the ninth ranked Canadian. Kitty Wilde was a former number two who had made the finals of two Slams but had been unable to make that last breakthrough. Rachel and Shelby had spent hours analyzing video footage of her matches, and had come up with a game plan that would hopefully see Rachel through to round two. This would be the first time that Rachel was playing a current top ten player, and she was already relishing the opportunity.

The players met at the net for the toss, where it was determined that Kitty would serve first. They began their pre-match warm up, the tournament announcer introducing them to the crowd as they loosened up. Rachel was introduced first, and the half-full stadium gave their relatively unknown home grown player a rousing ovation. The cheers for Rachel were matched by the cheers for Kitty, with dozens of Canadian's making the trip to see the star.

Rachel made her way to her chair when the umpire announced that there were two minutes left for the match to commence. She hydrated herself, glancing back at her box as she did so. Her father's had surprised her by showing up the previous night, and Rachel was delighted to have them there. Having full-time jobs meant that they couldn't watch Rachel play as much as any of them would have liked, so it was always special when they were able to make it to one of her matches. And this was the biggest match of her career so far.

The players made their way to their ends of the court as the crowd fell silent. Kitty served a fault, and Rachel took a big step inside the baseline.

"Attack the second serve" she muttered under her breath. Rachel and Shelby had determined that the best way to get the vital break of serve was to attack Kitty's weaker second serve.

Kitty served again, and Rachel let rip with a cracking backhand crosscourt winner. The shot seemed to stun both Kitty and the crowd, who gasped before bursting into cheers. There was a skip in Rachel's step as she walked to the other side of the court to return.

Rachel and her coach knew they had the element of surprise on their side. For starters, Kitty had never played against Rachel before. But Rachel had also not played many tour level games, period. Which meant that she knew a lot more about Kitty's game than the higher ranked player knew about hers. Shelby had given Rachel clear instructions to bring her best game in the first hour, and keep mixing up her shots to avoid being predictable. Kitty was a player who liked to build an early lead, and Shelby believed Rachel could win the match if she didn't let the Canadian settle down and find her rhythm.

The advice proved spot on an hour and twenty minutes later, when Rachel hit a volley to win the match 6-3, 7-5. The crowd in Stadium Court had slowly built as word of a potential upset spread through the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, to the point where it was now an almost completely packed house. Rachel raised her hands in the air, and turned to grin at her box where Shelby, Hiram and Leroy were on their feet. Her Papa was being trigger happy with a DSLR, and Rachel knew there would be a new picture on the wall when she made it back to their home in New York. She quickly made her way to the net, where Kitty was waiting patiently.

"Well played" the Canadian star said, shaking Rachel's hand before heading to the umpire.

Rachel followed, shaking the umpire's hand when it was her turn. She then turned and looked back at her father's and Shelby, pumping her fist at them as she did. She sat down, letting the moment sink in before putting her stuff away. Everything had gone to plan today. Rachel's serve had not let her down, and she knew that she had won almost all of her net approaches. She knew Shelby wouldn't be too happy at some of the unforced errors she'd made on her forehand side, but her coach would be satisfied that she had made it through the round.

Fifteen minutes later Rachel was in the corridor that led to the Stadium Court, looking at the draw that had been put on the wall. The tennis player had been adamant that she didn't want to see the rest of the draw till she'd made it past the first round, and she took a deep breath as she looked at her next matchup that was prominently displayed on the wall.

Q. FABRAY

vs

R. BERRY


	5. Chapter 5

**Greetings everyone. Let me start by once again saying a heartfelt thank you to everyone that reviewed the story or dropped me a line since I last updated. It makes me happy to know that there are people who actually look forward to my story updates! And I'm pleased to know that genuine tennis fans appreciate that I'm trying to pay attention to detail and get my facts about the sport right. As some readers have pointed out, I use names of real tennis players every so often, and I hope you don't mind that I bend their ages and career trajectories to suit my story. Let's just call it creative liberty.**

**Without much further ado, here's the next chapter. I look forward to my next lot of reviews :)**

'So this is what prime time looks like' Rachel thought, lobbing another ball high for her opponent to easily smash back to her end of the court. People were still making their way to their seats, chatting to one another as they navigated their way across the brightly lit Stadium Court. The smell of food, the flashing of cameras and the sound of people's voices filled the air. Rachel glanced at her box as she lobbed another ball high, and spotted her Papa taking a big bite out of a hot dog. Beside him her Daddy saw her looking their way, and smiled at his daughter. The brunette briefly wondered where Shelby had disappeared to, before turning her attention back to the other side of the court, where Quinn Fabray had stepped closer to the net so that Rachel could now have the opportunity to practice her overhead smashes.

The younger player took a few steps back, indicating that she was ready. Quinn sent the first lob her way, gently bouncing in place as she waited for Rachel to hit the ball. Rachel looked up, momentarily distracted by the brightness of the floodlights before she sent a clean smash back to Quinn. They continued the back and forth for a minute or so before the umpire announced that play would begin in one minute. Rachel hit one more smash, then nodded to her opponent before making her way to her seat.

Rachel was taking a swig from her drink bottle when she spotted Shelby. Her coach was standing next to Quinn's box, talking to Sue Sylvester. The two women shared a laugh before parting ways. Shelby glanced at Rachel as she made her way back to her charge's fathers, and mouthed a quick 'C'mon' that was accompanied by a fist pump when she realised that Rachel was looking at her. The corners of the brunette's lips turned up in a smile, and she took another sip of her drink. She looked back at Quinn's box, her heart picking up speed when she realised that Emma Pillsbury had taken a seat between Sue and Quinn's father, Russell Fabray. Rachel turned her head, curious to see what her opponent was doing. The blonde was staring straight ahead, her eyes seemingly focused on a faraway spot that wasn't visible to anyone in the actual arena.

"Time", said the chair umpire.

Rachel rose and walked to her end of the court, crossing paths with Quinn as she did. A ball kid bounced a ball her way, Rachel nodding her head at him till she was holding three balls in her palm. She tossed one ball back to the boy, tucked the second into the compression shorts under her dress and turned to serve the first ball of the match. She showed Quinn the ball in her hand, and received the briefest of nods in acknowledgment. Rachel bounced the ball, taking a deep breath before tossing it up in the air and sending a flat serve down the T. Quinn chipped a backhand back her way, which Rachel returned with an aggressive forehand that she followed to the net. Quinn just managed to get her forehand to the ball, and Rachel easily put away her weak return. The audience applauded her play as she made her way back to the service line.

The umpire waited for the applause to die down, before stating "Fifteen, love."

Rachel bounced the ball, discreetly changing her grip to an Eastern backhand grip as she did. The brunette sent a top spin serve to Quinn's backhand, pleased when her opponent read the serve wrong and hit her return into the net.

The brunette wiped the sweat off her brow with her wristband, watching Quinn ready herself to receive on the other side of the court. The world's top-ranked player looked unfazed at having lost the first two points of the match, and bounced up to return the kick serve that Rachel sent her way next. Her forehand came rushing down the line, and Rachel barely had a second to respond before the ball had zoomed past her.

The audience roared at the shot, and the umpire waited for the noise to die down before stating, "Thirty, fifteen."

A breeze passed through Stadium Court as Rachel bounced the ball. The brunette barely noticed the slight goosebumps on her throwing arm as she tossed the ball air, but couldn't miss the satisfaction that coursed through her veins the minute her racket connected with the airborne ball. She noticed with some glee that Quinn wasn't expecting the wide ace that zipped past her at 107 mph. The blonde looked up at Rachel, and the brunette could swear she saw the slightest hint of surprise in her eyes before she crossed over to receive the next serve.

"Forty, fifteen", said the umpire.

Rachel opted to send Quinn a slice serve this time, and a brief rally later she found herself volleying a backhand winner across the court.

"Game, Berry. Berry leads one game to love" the umpire said.

Rachel took a quick sip of her drink before starting to cross to the other side of the court. She realised that Quinn was also about to cross over, and before she could stop to think about it, Quinn had halted in her tracks to let Rachel pass. The brunette muttered a quick thank you to the blonde, and passed her towel to the ball kid on this end of the court before getting in position to return serve.

Rachel and Shelby had once again spent hours preparing for this match, and knew that Quinn Fabray's serve was one of her biggest strengths. It wasn't the fastest serve in the world, but it wasn't close to being the slowest either. Quinn's excellent service placement helped make it one of the best known weapons in women's tennis today, and her second serve wasn't anything to laugh at either. The statistics sheet that Shelby and Rachel had studied the previous night showed that Quinn Fabray had won eighty-nine percent of her service games last year. If that wasn't an intimidating statistic, nothing was.

Rachel tried not to think about how good Quinn's service game was as the blonde tossed the ball in the air. She would have to wait to receive her first serve from the top-seed though, because the blonde caught the ball in her hand again.

"Sorry", Quinn called out.

Rachel nodded her head, crouching down again as Quinn bounced the ball. 'I guess I'm not the only one bothered by the wind' she thought, as Quinn tossed the ball in the air. The next thing she knew, the ball had zoomed down the T and past her backhand side.

"Fifteen, love", said the umpire.

Rachel tried not to let her awe at the serve show as she glanced at serve speed. '114 mph', Rachel thought incredulously, 'My reflexes are going to need to be switched on tonight.'

Forty minutes later, the score was locked at six games all. Neither woman had relinquished her serve, although Quinn had had three break point opportunities. Rachel had fought each one off with good, solid shots, refusing to play defensive tennis even when her back was against the wall. The brunette had even won over the crowd with her never-say-die attitude, and the Indian Wells audience was now equally vocal in it's support for both American's.

Rachel won the first point of the tiebreaker, and watched as Quinn selected a ball to serve with. So far the brunette hadn't been able to crack the Fabray serve, and the best she'd done was to get to thirty-all in Quinn's fifth service game, aided by Quinn's one and only double fault of the night. Rachel knew she would have to change that if she wanted to win this set and then this match, but she found herself wondering how she was supposed to do that when Quinn smashed another ace past her. Rachel sent a frustrated look to her box, only to be met with Shelby's determined face nodding vigorously back at her. The brunette knew what that meant. She was doing the right thing and needed to stay focused and positive.

The two women continued to hold their serves, till Rachel served at four-all in the tiebreaker. The brunette sent a flat serve down the T, and was convinced she had served a winner till she heard the linesman call it out. Rachel immediately raised her hand to challenge the call, but as the screen showed moments later, her serve was wide by a distance of two millimetres. The audience laughed out loud in disbelief, gasping as one before the umpire requested them to quieten down as Rachel prepared to send Quinn her second serve. The brunette realised that Quinn was standing inside the baseline for this one, and sent a wide kick serve to the other side of the court. Quinn whacked a service return that caught the tape on the net, and fell traitorously on Rachel's side of the court. The audience's groan matched the exasperated sound in Rachel's head and Quinn lifted her hand in apology, but that didn't change the fact that the blonde now had the mini break. Two points later, Rachel sipped her drink as she stared at the scoreboard, lamenting how tennis really was a game of millimetres and net cords.

Rachel's frustration at losing the first set followed her into the start of the second, where her lack of focus proved to be her undoing in the first game. Three poor serves and a perfectly placed drop shot from Quinn led to the first service break of the match. Rachel mentally berated herself at the change of ends, and told herself to snap out of it. The advice to herself worked and Rachel lifted her game from then on, but as it turned out, the one break of serve was enough for Quinn to win the set 6-4.

The two players met at the net after the match, and Quinn shook Rachel's hand with a firm grip. "Well played Rachel", Quinn said.

"You too. Obviously" Rachel replied, with a self-depracating smile.

Quinn gave her a kind smile in return, "I expect I'll be seeing a lot more of you on tour. Good luck." And with that, the two women parted ways.

In the days to come Rachel would realise that there was much to be proud of in how she'd played that night. She would understand that she needed to control her emotions better, that she couldn't dwell on points that had already been played and she definitely couldn't let errors in her game fog her focus, judgment and clarity of thought. She would learn all that and more. But as Rachel stepped off the court and into the corridor, it was easy to ignore the appreciative applause of the crowd as her shoulder's slumped with disappointment.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello readers. My apologies to anyone that's been waiting for an update to this story. It has only taken this long because I have been on holiday for the past three weeks, and was too busy exploring the world to find the time to sit down and write. I'm still on holiday, but should be back to updating on a weekly basis from the end of this month. I also hope to get a couple of extra chapters done soon, to make up for the two week's worth of updates that I should have had ready and uploaded by now. Again, thank you to everyone that dropped me a review, or favourited me or my story. It is all much appreciated, and quite good for my ego. **

**Happy reading :) **

Rachel didn't like waiting. But she knew that she had only herself to blame for her current predicament. The brunette had easily made it past the first round of qualifying at the Miami Open before her main draw dreams were dashed by one Brittany S. Pierce. Sure, the match had been a close one, and at one point Rachel had even been a mere four points away from winning it, but that didn't make the player feel any better after the loss.

Rachel was currently in the players' lounge, an unopened book sitting in her lap. The usually voracious reader had tried reading a few pages of Dan Brown's latest thriller, but gave up when she realized that she'd read the same line at least half a dozen times without getting anywhere. Shelby was seated on the lazy boy across her, watching what appeared to be another ridiculous reality dating show.

The voices in her own head were getting to Rachel, mocking her for putting herself in this position by not making it to the final rounds of qualifying, which were currently being played across the grounds. Rachel decided to break the silence, "Did you have to do much of this when you were starting out?"

Shelby looked at her charge, "By 'this' I assume you mean waiting around, hoping to grab one of the lucky loser spots?"

When Rachel nodded, she shrugged, "I think I did it about five times. Just the one time in the players lounge, FYI. Sitting in here, watching the clock tick and praying for a tournament official to walk your way with a smile is pure torture." She gave the younger woman a pointed look before continuing, "I made it into the main draw twice. I was fortunate to get a few wild cards at the start of my career, which made things easier."

"What was the tour like back in your day?" Rachel asked.

Shelby looked away from the TV screen again, "Less friendly than it is today."

Rachel rolled her eyes, and Shelby laughed at the look of disbelief on the young woman's face. "It's true, players today are much warmer towards one another. Everyone might not be BFF's, but at the very least there's a mutual respect. Back in my day a lot of people were influenced by the Peter Graf doctrine of treating your opponents like your enemies. That sort of mentality might have molded Sue Sylvester into the legend that she went on to become, but believe me, she didn't have any friends on tour until much later in her career."

Rachel was now genuinely curious, "What changed?"

Shelby looked thoughtful, "I think a lot of us realized that we were seeing more of each other than our own families. A lot of us stayed at the same hotels, so we even saw one another at meals. You traveled on the same planes, sometimes trained together, waited out rain delays together, played against each other multiple times a year and, I don't know…we formed real friendships. Younger players coming up the ranks saw that most of us got along well, and that attitude of treating your opponents with respect and making meaningful relationships continued on well after we'd retired."

"What about Sue?" Rachel asked.

"Like I said, Sue made friends towards the end of her career. She was still a dominant force in tennis at the time, so it wasn't like losing made her humble or anything dramatic like that. I guess she realized it wasn't healthy to psyche yourself into believing that the person on the other side of the net was someone to be destroyed. I also know she genuinely began enjoying the sport more in the last few years, which probably made a world of a difference" Shelby said.

Rachel had read Sue Sylvester's autobiography, so she understood the context of what Shelby was saying. The Hall of Famer's family had migrated to the US from Italy when Sue was a toddler, and her domineering father had forced his daughter to take up the sport after spotting her obvious talent for it at the age of five. Sue's book plainly stated how she'd detested having to train for hours a day while other kids her age got to lead normal lives, and how she'd even considered retiring after winning a few Slams and making enough money to ensure that future generations of Sylvester's wouldn't have to work a day of their lives.

"Of course the ultimate irony is that Sue now manages a player whose father is amongst the least friendly on tour. You know that Fabray and Lopez went to the same tennis academy, and have been friends since their pre-teens, right?" When Rachel nodded, Shelby continued, "Well, Russell wanted Quinn to end that friendship when she graduated to the professional level. He didn't think his daughter would have the killer instinct if she was playing against a close friend, and told her she should sacrifice her friendship with Lopez for the sake of her career aspirations. It also didn't help that Lopez is very open about her sexuality, and Russell Fabray is a Bible-thumper that conveniently picks and chooses the parts of the Bible he wants to follow. There's a term for that…Cafeteria Christianity, or something like that. Anyway, I hear that he and Sue had quite the argument over who Quinn could and couldn't be friends with. Obviously Sue won that one" she finished.

By now, Rachel wasn't even thinking about the on-going qualifying matches anymore. Shelby had her full attention, as she stated, "If that's the case then I'm surprised Russell even hired Sue to train his daughter in the first place."

"And I was just as surprised that Sue took the job" Shelby replied. "I'd heard rumours of the Fabray camp negotiating with Sue at the end of Quinn's first year on tour, and know first-hand that Sue didn't want to take the job after her first meeting with Russell and Quinn. I think it was the USTA that set up the initial meet, despite the fact that neither the camp nor Sue were particularly keen on the partnership. But then Sue met Quinn on her own, which was followed by a one-on-one hit and training session, and the next thing I knew, they were a team."

"A successful team", Rachel pointed out.

Shelby nodded, "Sue has been good for Fabray. Apart from the actual tennis knowledge and coaching that she imparts, she's also instrumental in keeping Quinn sane and mentally ready to play when Russell gets overtly…difficult. I think Sue's experiences with her own father give her a unique understanding of Quinn's situation."

"Wow. Stories like that make me appreciate my father's even more than I already do" Rachel said.

Shelby laughed out loud, "As they should. Tennis players might be nicer to each other these days, but I look forward to the day when tennis is completely void of troublesome stage parents."

The two women sat in silence for a few moments, before Shelby spoke again, "To get back to what I think you were hinting at with your first question, no, this waiting isn't fun. And it's also not a good feeling, sitting around hoping that someone else drops out or pulls up injured just so you squeak into the draw. But that's the sport we play, and the sport we love. Yesterday Brittany beat you, tomorrow you'll beat her. It'll hurt to lose, and you'll feel bad beating your friends. But you have to want to win. Like, _really_ want to win. Otherwise this sport will chew you up and spit you out mangled and broken. It's difficult to explain how lonely a sport tennis can be, especially when you're getting your ass whooped in front of a few thousand people that are all supporting the person on the other end of the court. Out there it's just you, your desire to win, your ability to hold your nerves during crux points, your composure, your presence of mind. All you."

Rachel took a deep breath, and Shelby's expression softened as she continued, "Yes, it takes talent to be a champion of this sport, but more than that it takes more mental resilience than I can even put into words. And I honestly believe that you, Rachel Barbra Berry, have what it takes to make it to the pinnacle of this sport. We're not there yet, not by a long way. But I believe we'll get there if you continue to work as hard as you already do, and keep adapting and learning as quickly as you are at the moment. You have that thirst to win, to be the best, and that's half the battle won."

Rachel was touched at her mentor's words, "Thank you Shelby. That encouragement means a lot, coming from you. But", she hesitated, "do you think this sport will change who I am?"

Shelby opened her mouth to answer, but was interrupted by a gale force that entered the room and stopped across her.

"I'm in!" Brittany Pierce squealed, staring down at Rachel with a shit-eating grin. The blonde girl had obviously come straight from the tennis court, her playing shirt soaked with perspiration from running around under the blazing Miami sun. "I absolutely demolished Mehta, Rach!"

Rachel let out a squeal of her own as she jumped to her feet and wrapped her friend in a bear hug. "I'm so happy for you Brit!" The two women parted before she asked, "When's your first game?"

"I haven't checked the draw yet" Brittany shrugged. "I wanted to come tell you the news first, and see if you'd had any luck?"

Rachel shook her head, the smile never leaving her face "Nothing yet. But hey, it isn't the end of the world. I'm just glad one of us gets to play in the main draw. Yay!"

Brittany smiled, "Thanks Rach. Ok, I'm gonna go shower and check if they've released the draw. Lemme know if your situation changes, ok?" Rachel nodded, and Brittany turned to leave, "See ya later Rach. Bye Shelby."

Shelby waved at the departing girl, and smiled at Rachel as her charge sat back down, "I think that answers your question Rachel. The likelihood of tennis changing who you are is about as probable as me coming out of retirement."

"Please don't", Rachel laughed. "I would really hate having to kick your butt on the tennis court!"

Shelby mock glared at the giggling brunette, "Now, to take your mind off this exhausting and in all likelihood pointless wait, may I suggest you join me in watching what has to be the worst date ever?"

Rachel jokingly huffed, "Oh, alright. If I have to." She watched Shelby look back at her screen, before saying her coach's name again. When she was met with a questioning gaze, Rachel said "Thanks for sitting with me while I wait."

Shelby opted not to verbally respond, and simply waved Rachel's thanks away. "Now let me watch this date, goddammit" she joked, and the two women turned their attention to the screen where a nerd was about to undergo a physical transformation.

No words were exchanged for the next half hour, and the reality show was moments away from the big reveal when Rachel and Shelby were alerted to the sound of someone clearing their throat. Looking up, they were met with the sight of Sue Sylvester staring down at them, the amused glint in her eyes hard to miss.

"Sorry to disturb you from watching what is clearly quality television, but I was hoping we could all talk" Sue smirked.

Shelby smiled warmly at her friend, "Hi Sue. What can we do for you?"

"I hear the odds of a lucky loser spot opening up this week are pretty bad, but I was wondering if I could convince your charge, and you of course, to stay on a few extra days, maybe even the whole week. My charge's usual hitting partner seems to have caught a bug after trying some of this city's famed Cuban food, and I doubt he'll be able to drag himself away from the men's room long enough to be of any real use anytime soon" Sue said, her gaze alternating between Shelby and Rachel as she spoke.

Shelby looked at Rachel, allowing her to make the decision. A shocked-looking Rachel was staring up a Sue, "You want me to hit with Quinn Fabray?"

"Yes", Sue said.

Rachel looked at Shelby with a question in her eyes. The older brunette just shrugged her shoulders, letting Rachel know that she was okay with whatever the girl wanted. Rachel looked back at Sue, "What happens if I do manage to get into the draw?"

"The offer is still on the table, whether or not you're competing this week" the retired player said.

Rachel nodded her head, "Okay then. I'd love to hit with Fabray this week."

"What sort of schedule are you looking at?" Shelby asked.

"We hit for two hours in the morning or late afternoon on days when Q doesn't have any matches scheduled, and for forty-five minutes about two-and-a-half hours before the game on match days. What about Berry?" Sue replied.

"More or less the same. We can figure it out if Rachel gets a spot in the draw later today, or early tomorrow. Otherwise we'll work around Fabray's schedule on days that she isn't competing, and put in some extra yards ourselves on days when Fabray is playing", Shelby answered.

"Done" Sue smiled, "I'm off to book a court for practice tomorrow morning. We'll be on court at 7:30 am. I'll text you the court number when they tell me which one we're using. It'll probably be 4 or 5. Enjoy the rest of your evening ladies", and with that Sue took off.

Shelby turned to look at Rachel, who still seemed shocked at everything that had just transpired. "You might not get any real match play this week Rach, but I have a feeling that this will be just as good. Oh look, he looks completely different!"


	7. Chapter 7

**Time for an update everyone :) Thank you for the reviews and feedback. The last chapter now matches my first chapter for the most number of reviews, which is awesome. As a writer who's putting stuff out there, it's always nice when people take the time to say something. Now, let's keep this show moving!**

Rachel was sweating like it was going out of fashion. 'And Fabray isn't even here yet' she thought, lifting the medicine ball high above her head before tossing it back to Shelby, who was on the other side of the net. Rachel quickly side skipped to the deuce court, caught the ball again, and continued with the exercise.

Shelby had insisted on getting to the court at 6:45, wanting her charge to have a proper stretch and some strength training before Sue arrived with her own charge. As Shelby had reiterated to Rachel over dinner the previous night, it was imperative that they improve the young player's fitness, agility and power if she was to win consistently on the professional tour. The subject was something she had broached with the Berry's when they first began discussing the possibility of her agreeing to become Rachel's fulltime coach. Shelby had drilled in the importance of Rachel improving the physicality of her game to match, and hopefully even better, the levels of fitness displayed by her soon-to-be fellow elite athletes.

When Shelby signed the contract, one of the first things she did was go over Rachel's diet plan and her gym schedule. By the time pre-season training began, Rachel's eating habits had been drastically modified and she was sweating it out in gym under the watchful eye of a Strength and Conditioning Coordinator who had spent a large chunk of the last decade working for the Yankees. Shelby took over for Sheldon Beiste when Rachel was on the road, and probably worked her young charge even harder than the well-known trainer. Rachel wasn't complaining, in fact, she was happy to fall asleep exhausted night after night in exchange for the muscle definition she had begun to develop.

Shelby was going to make the most of the unexpected chance to train with the World No. 1. Starting with teaching Rachel that she would need to learn how to tap into energy reserves she didn't even know she had to succeed in professional women's tennis.

So far there had been no lucky loser spots up for grabs, and it didn't look like there would be any withdrawals before the first round matches had been completed either. Everyone who had automatically qualified for the Miami Open seemed to be in fine form, except for Santana Lopez, who had withdrawn from her third round match at Indian Wells and immediately announced that she was also skipping Miami to nurse a thigh strain. Last night at dinner Shelby had asked Rachel if she wanted to make the most of their current situation by combining a physically grueling week of training with a real test of her match play against Quinn Fabray. Rachel had said yes without a moment's hesitation, and Shelby had immediately rung Sue to discuss the possibility of their charge's playing a competitive set or two on days that Quinn didn't have matches. The other coach was happy to oblige, so all systems were officially a go.

Shelby checked her watch, "Ok, Fabray should be here in five minutes. Let's take a break."

Rachel walked to her chair, feeling surprisingly energized despite having spent the last thirty minutes going full throttle. She was just finishing off a banana when Sue appeared at the little gate on the side of the court, followed by Quinn Fabray and a dark-haired man that Rachel didn't recognize.

'How many tracksuits does the woman own?' Rachel wondered, as Sue nodded at the brunette before walking up to exchange pleasantries with Shelby. Behind the tall blonde Quinn raised her hand to half-wave at Rachel as she made her way to the other chair on court.

The man placed the large bag he was carrying down beside the net before turning to Rachel with an outstretched hand, "Elliot Gilbert".

Rachel shook his hand, "Rachel Berry."

"Nice to meet you" Elliot smiled, before bending down and unzipping the bag. He pulled out a skipping rope, some light weights, resistance bands and an exercise ball, placed them all on the ground near the bag and stood back up. "Ready Quinn?" he asked, walking over to the blonde.

Rachel watched them start on some basic stretches while taking a large sip of water. A shadow fell across her chair, and she looked up to see Sue and Shelby both staring down at her.

"I need to warm up. Wanna have a quick hit?" Sue asked, and Rachel bounced up from her chair.

"Yes!" the brunette grinned, rising from her chair in a flash. Never in her wildest imagination had she ever thought that she'd get to be on the receiving end of a ball coming off the racket of Sue Sylvester. _THE_ Sue Sylvester. Wait till her dad's heard about this! She could hear Shelby chuckle as she hurried to her side of the court.

Rachel turned around to seed that Quinn and Elliot had moved away from the actual playing area to make room for Sue. They continued with their stretching as the coach questioned, "Start at the service line?" Rachel nodded, taking a few steps closer the net. "Don't use too much backswing yet", Sue instructed.

Sue sent the first ball her way, and the two started an easy back and forth hit. The young player hid her surprise when Sue started to apply wristy topspin on some shots, and even threw in some cleverly disguised spins of her own.

A few minutes in Sue asked Rachel to take three steps back, and did the same on her side of the court. They were now midway between the baseline and the service line, so Sue instructed, "Use a little bit of backswing. Try to land your returns on the service line."

They started to hit again, Rachel doing a happy dance inside her head every time she managed to land a return squarely on the service line. This time Sue and Rachel were even throwing in some backspin, and the young player was relishing the challenge. She marveled at Sue's fine touch, which seemed to be on song despite her having retired just over a decade-and-a-half ago.

Sue caught the ball in her hand, "Alright, baseline. Try not to make the poor old lady run."

Rachel walked backwards, and noticed Quinn grinning at her coach in her peripheral vision. The top ranked star shook her head and turned her attention back to Elliot as Sue sent a ball Rachel's way. Neither player was using a lot of force, but Rachel noticed that Sue was slowly starting to move her around the court. The young player did her best to send every ball back to an area that Sue could reach in one step.

A minute or so later Rachel realized that Sue was gradually hitting the ball harder, and as a result Rachel had less time to react and get back into a dominant position on court. Despite the non-stop pace, she couldn't help but admire the variety of shots coming off Sue's racket. The much-celebrated former player might not have the legs and stamina to compete on tour anymore, but Rachel reckoned she would give any current player a run for their money if tennis was won on the quality of shots alone.

Rachel's legs were beginning to burn when Sue caught the ball in her free hand and turned to Quinn, "Now, why can't you do what Berry just did?"

Quinn laughed, "Because someone has to keep you on your toes Sue."

"I'm too good to you Fabray" Sue deadpanned, gesturing to Rachel to come closer as she approached the net. "Not bad Berry. Take a break. We'll pick up where we left off when Quinn's done stretching", she said, heading towards Shelby, who had been leaning against the fence and quietly observing her charge hit with her contemporary.

Rachel was used to Shelby discussing her strengths and weaknesses with her during these breaks, so she wasn't quite sure what to do as she sat down sipping from her drink bottle. That was until she heard the other chair being dragged closer to her own, and saw Quinn sit down in it.

"We haven't really met. I'm Quinn", the blonde said.

"I know who you are. I'm Rachel", the brunette smiled back.

"I know who you are too. I mean, we did play each other just this month! It's still polite to properly introduce yourself" Quinn said, still smiling as she sipped her drink. "Thanks for doing this, by the way. My regular hitting partner has a disgusting stomach bug, and we weren't sure if we'd be able to find a replacement for Mike this week."

"No, thank _you_ for inviting me out for the hit. It's a great opportunity for me, getting to hit with you and Sue. As for, Mike, was it?" Rachel waited for Quinn's nod of confirmation, "I hope he feels better soon."

Quinn waved away the brunette's concern, rolling her eyes, "It's Mike. He's of Asian descent, and thinks his stomach is made of iron. The guy hadn't even been to the Far East till he started touring with me, and is more American than Obama. But hey, who's going to listen to the two blondes?" she finished, shaking her head.

Rachel laughed, causing the corners of Quinn's lips to lift as well. The blonde took another sip before continuing, "It's true. A couple of year's ago I was playing at the Thailand Open, and Mike decided to order a tom yum soup on our first night there. The waiter tried to warn him about the Thai chili jam in there, but Mike said he ate a lot of authentic Thai food in Cincinnati". Rachel's eyes were sparkling with amusement, and even Quinn was grinning now, "Needless to say, he learned very, very quickly that the tom yum soup in Ohio isn't that authentic. For the next forty-eight hours Mike looked for a restro-".

"Alright, that's enough chitchat" Sue's voice boomed out from her spot near the fence. "Less talking, more tennis."

"I can well imagine how that story ends" Rachel cringed, grabbing her racket and standing up. Quinn chuckled before picking up her own racket and heading to one side of the court. The brunette took a deep breath as she watched her walk away, the moment really sinking in for the first time. She was about to have her first practice session with the woman who was arguably the best player in the world right now, and a retired legend, _two retired legends_, of the game would be watching and mentoring. 'The God's really are kind sometimes' she thought, taking off towards the baseline.


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello! Sorry it's taken me a bit longer than expected to post an update. I hope you all know that while the intervals between chapter updates might differ, I am 100% committed to this story. As always, thank you to everyone that dropped me some feedback this week. I received some very good pointers from some reviewers, and was given ideas that I even hadn't considered till they were mentioned. I appreciate your time, words and advice. Now, onto Chapter 8!**

"Put some more topspin on those forehands Berry. That really throws Fabray off her game!" Santana shouted out, sauntering onto the court.

The crowd that was gathered to watch the world no. 1 having a hit laughed at the Latina's statement, some even clapping. Completely caught by surprise, Rachel glanced towards Santana and as a result failed to get to the return that Quinn sent her way moments later.

"What are you doing here, Santana?" Quinn asked, putting her free hand on her hip as she addressed the newcomer. The sound of camera clicks filled the air, and Rachel noticed that some people were even filming the interaction between the two top players.

Santana took her time answering, sauntering up to one of the empty chairs along the fence and taking a seat first. The woman clearly enjoyed the drama. "Here, at a tennis tournament? Gee, I don't know Q, what _would_ I be doing at a tennis tournament?" Her sarcasm drew more laughs, and Quinn rolled her eyes at her friend. "I'm here to watch you play Fabray. Resting an injury is mind-numbingly boring."

Sue, who was standing in a corner of the court behind Quinn, piped up, "Good to see the injury hasn't affected your mouth Santana. Fabray, let's keep this moving". She tossed Quinn a ball, and the blonde quickly got into position and served to Rachel.

It was a beautiful afternoon in Miami, and Quinn and Rachel were having a brief hit before the world's top player took to the court for the first match of the evening session. This was their third day of practicing together, and yesterday they'd even gymmed together for a couple of hours. Shelby was certain that Rachel's game had already benefitted from getting to play against the world's best player, and even the younger brunette could tell that her coach was telling the truth.

Quinn and Rachel had played actual sets during their first two practice sessions together, and the blonde had won both. On the bright side, she had won six games to one on the first day, and six games to three yesterday. Rachel had been secretly proud despite losing again on the second day, because she realized that her anticipation and shot making were markedly better in the space of twenty-four hours. Sue Sylvester had also been kind enough to talk to Rachel after each session, and had pinpointed precise weaknesses in the brunette's footwork, movement, and other elements of her game. The older woman's assessment's came with advice on how to get better, which Rachel was very grateful for.

Quinn always stuck around to hear Sue's analysis of Rachel's game, and didn't move away when it was time for the tennis legend to point out flaws in her own game. The blonde listened to her coach attentively, asking questions when she felt the need, clearly not minding that Rachel and Shelby were listening in. Rachel's coach had also pointed out some flaws in Quinn's game, and again, Quinn had been happy to take her suggestions on board. In fact, both days Quinn had asked Rachel if it was ok to go back on court for fifteen minutes to test out the advice both coaches had meted out to the pair of them.

Rachel had been pleasantly surprised to realize that all the articles she has read about Quinn over the past few years were not made up. Print journalist's had always stated that the world no. 1 was one of the most liked players on tour, and a part of Rachel had wondered whether the papers at least exaggerated their words of praise just because of the blonde's position in world tennis. Quinn was also famous for inviting up and coming players ranked between fifty and one hundred to her base in Miami for off-season boot camp's, and Rachel had even listened to their locker-room gushing to fellow players with a pinch of suspicion. From the looks of it though, Quinn really was a welcoming and encouraging contemporary.

In two days of practice sessions Quinn, and Sue, had made sure that Rachel spent time implementing the advice that Sue and Shelby had given the younger player that day. For instance, yesterday Rachel's backhand seemed to be the slightest bit off and she was missing marks by a couple of inches, so Sue had suggested a minor tweak on her backswing. The older woman then stood on Rachel's side of the court, giving running commentary on Rachel's shot making while Quinn patiently sent back returns to Rachel's backhand from her side of the court. Of course, Rachel had returned the favour when Quinn wanted to work on a shot, but to be honest, she was amazed at how she was being treated like an equal by both women.

Today Quinn was playing her first match of the tournament, after getting a first round bye. Her opponent was an unseeded Frenchwoman who had come into the main draw through qualifying, but it appeared that the blonde wasn't taking the match against Natalie Nastase for granted. Shelby told Rachel that Sue and Quinn had spent part of the last evening watching videos of the world no. 86, and today they had specifically asked Rachel to send as many low backhand slices to Quinn as she could.

Rachel noticed that Quinn seemed even more focused today, and knew it was because she was getting herself in the right headspace to compete. While the blonde was as courteous and friendly as usual, you could tell that she was hitting her shots with more purpose, and asking Sue more questions between play. Even Santana's clearly unexpected appearance didn't throw her off, and Quinn went right back to zoning in on the yellow ball that was flying between her and Rachel. To the Latina's credit, she had quit the chitchat and was now alternating between watching the two players having a hit and entertaining herself with her phone.

Around twenty minutes later Quinn hit a backhand passing shot that beat Rachel, and put her hand up to indicate that she was done. The two women had just met at the side of the net when a racket-bag carrying Brittany walked in through the little gate. She looked up at Rachel with one of her signature dazzling smiles, asking "Am I early?"

Rachel smiled back, "No Brit. Your timing's perfect."

The tall blonde approached Rachel's chair, and placed her bag down beside the brunettes. She waved hello at Shelby, who waved back, and Sue, who nodded her head at the newcomer before turning back to continue her conversation with her fellow coach.

"Ken's just gone to pick up a couple of my rackets that needed to be restrung" Brittany said, referring to her absentee coach. "He should be here any minute now." Rachel nodded, sipping from her drink bottle. Brittany turned to Quinn, "I haven't had the pleasure of playing against you yet, but I know I will. I'm Brittany Pierce."

Quinn looked momentarily taken aback by the forward introduction, before shaking her head, smiling at the newcomer and reaching out her hand "I'm Quinn. And I look forward to playing against you too."

"Brittany and I will be having a practice session after I've had a hit with you" Rachel explained, and Quinn nodded.

A throat clearing alerted their little group to another person joining their little party. "Hi, I'm Santana" the Latina said, reaching out to shake Brittany's hand.

Quinn now seemed practically shocked at the sight of her friend introducing herself to the tall blonde. She looked between Santana and Brittany for a moment, then said "Well San, you haven't met Rachel either, so let me-"

The Latina cut her off, "You're mistaken Q. I met Berry in Melbourne."

Quinn looked at Rachel for confirmation, which the brunette gave with a nod. "Okay then, that's settled. Well, I better get going to prepare for my match. It was nice to meet you Brittany. And thanks again Rachel. I hope to have another hit with you tomorrow" Quinn said, raising her hand and crossing her fingers. "You coming Lopez?" she asked, picking up her bag.

"Nah, you go get changed Q. I think I'll watch Berry and Brittany practice for a little bit before coming to find you", Santana replied.

Quinn looked surprised again, but didn't say anything. She thanked the trio when they wished her good luck for her match that night, and then took off towards the gate, where dozens of fans were waiting to get her autograph.

"I'm just going to stretch Rach, and we can start right after, ok?" Brittany asked.

"Sure Brit, just let me know when you're ready" Rachel smiled. The brunette was left standing with the Latina, not knowing exactly what to say. Santana seemed to be quite content watching Brittany stretch, but the silence got too much for Rachel after a few moments, so she asked "So… how's your thigh?"

The Latina shrugged, "I've started light exercises with no pain, but my physio still wants me to sit out Charleston. It's annoying, but I understand that my team doesn't want me to aggravate the injury again before it's healed properly."

Quinn turned to wave to the two women before security escorted her out the gate and through the crowds. Rachel and Santana waved back, and Sue went to follow after her charge. Shelby joined them, "Hi Santana. You're sticking around for a bit, are you?"

Santana nodded, "Yeah. It beats sitting at home."

"You must hate having to sit out a tournament that's being played in your backyard" Shelby noted.

"Oh yeah, it definitely sucks." Santana agreed. "But hey, there's always next year. And I'll be fit for the tournament in my other backyard in May."

"That's a good attitude to have" Shelby complimented, before turning her full attention to Rachel to discuss things she had noted during her charge's brief hit with Quinn. The Latina excused herself and went back to the chair that she was occupying when Rachel was practicing with Quinn.

Rachel glanced at the Latina as she chatted with her coach, marveling at the fact that the woman ranked number two in the world was sticking around to watch her have a hit with her friend and competitor. Even some of the crowd that had come to watch her hit with Quinn had stayed behind to watch her and Brittany, mainly because the famous Spaniard wasn't leaving. The shorter brunette watched curiously as Santana kept glancing up from her phone to watch Brittany stretch, quickly looking back down when the blonde glanced her way. And Rachel also noted how her blonde friend's stare would linger on the Latina when she thought no one was looking. You didn't need to be a rocket scientist to figure out that they were checking each other out. '_Let's see where this goes_' Rachel thought, inwardly smirking to herself as she continued listening to Shelby's pointers.


End file.
